Monthly Archives: February 2012

As you may know some people refer to some countries like PIGS or PIIGS. Using the same way of creating something that seems brought by chance but that helps some purpose I just have thought that if Southern Europe, the sunny side of Europe, should have a flag of its own, then the one here would nicely do. Needless to say that if countries in Southern Europe use this flag then it is easy to imagine the flag of Northern Europe. The opposite of a smile …

When tourists come to Barcelona they know they are going to see marvels of Gaudí like La Pedrera, Casa Batlló, Park Güell or Sagrada Familia among other modernist buildings.

Wouldn’t it be nice that the tourists also could associate Barcelona with a place that in connection with the mobiles it is pure latest state of the art.

Maybe it won’t be cheap but I think it is very important that Barcelona has 4G as soon as possible. Any person in Europe or around the world who has the latest state of the art mobile must consider Barcelona as a place to visit to see its marvels and to enjoy the latest technology on earth. If this does not happen the only thing we are doing is not putting Barcelona at the level that it could be.

I leave you with a video from the BBC about the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona:

Today has begun the World Mobile Congress in the Catalan capital and on TV I have seen the entrance in Plaça Espanya. There I saw the logo of Huawei.

This Chinese company is not known so much as other companies of Asia such as Samsung, etc but maybe in the future it becomes more famous.

I got to know this Chinese company some years ago as I bought a modem. During months I could not pronounce it name. But recently, looking for mobiles, I realized that the mobiles of Huawei were some of the cheapest and at the same time giving you some of the best things that a phone can give you. As far as I know Huawei sells mobiles with WIFI at prices that no other companies do or at least that is my impression.

So I just want to wish the people of Huawei a nice future. It is nice to have iPhones, Samsung Galaxies, etc but it is also nice that there is a company that brings current technology to those who cannot afford expensive smartphones or that prefer to spend their money in another way.

(Somebody may think that I have some connection with this company but this is not the case as I imagine it is not the case with the fans of Apple. If some love to adore Apple and its products I prefer to adore those companies that try to reach the gap between best technology and affordable prices.

As I like mobile phones the first time that the MOBILE WORLD CONGRESS came to Barcelona I was quite happy. Unfortunately that happiness did not last much as I realized that the congress did not have in mind at all the possible interest of the citizens of Barcelona in mobiles.

I wonder if now in 2012 they will take into account the interest in mobiles and they will do some activities related to mobiles for the general public.

I have the feeling as if this congress wast just the meeting of different people from around the world without taking care about other details. Quite a pity that says volumes about what really matters in this global world.

The title from this post just comes from a search that brought someone to this blog even before I wrote this post.

Today is one of the lowest days for the Spanish monarchy. The husband of a daughter of the king Juan Carlos will continue today going to a court in the city of Palma, Majorca.

In a perfect world I imagine that a Republic is the best thing as a Monarchy has something quite awful: its privileges are at odds with the sense of a society where we all have the same possibilities. One can dream to be an astronaut, a doctor, a film star. But you cannot dream to be a king or queen because Monarchy means privilege.

Unfortunately and although I think that a Republic is best than a Monarchy I am afraid that in Spain you never know. In this sense it is quite awful because some people who may not be quite against the Spanish Monarchy they don’t like it: they just realize that it is better to choose something awful but known that something unknown.

It is a bit ugly to realize that the next king of Spain, Felipe, is going to be quite alone. But better alone that in good terms with the husband of his sister.

By the way, in the BBC now you have podcasts about the art of monarchy or something.

Let me end by saying that one of the saddest things about this is that I always had a good thought about Urdangarin. I even remember when his marriage took place in Barcelona and I say the celebrations in Barcelona as they drove in a luxurious car.

If Spaniards decide to maintain the Monarchy in the future I just hope that Felipe and Letizia act taking into account that without the support of the majority of Spaniards the Monarchy in Spain has no continuity: with a majority of Spaniards against it would suffice to change the constitution to get rid of them.

VISCA LA REPÚBLICA!

By the way, I find an insult to the people from Palma in Majorca that Urdangarin continues having the title of Duke of Palma. I find this an insult to the people.

It is incredible how low can an institution fall in order to try to I do not know what. Some days ago the president of an old nation kneel down to an American Megarich who wants to build EUROVEGAS in Madrid or Barcelona.

Years and years trying to build a serious society and now we have the president of our country doing things that seem to me quite bad for Catalonia. It is very weird that those who say that love so much Catalonia have no problem at all to have agreements with those that some months ago were the enemies of Catalonia self government. How can you be very proud of Catalonia and at the same time seem to act as a poor person begging for the Eurovegas.

All this about the Eurovegas seems to me taken from an ugly tale. Now we know that some lands near Barcelona were offered to the Megarich American man. All done in a hurry. And what about the people of Catalonia. How can you want that the Catalan people decide their own future when you do not take into account the Catalan people for this project? Who has said that because we are in a crisis Catalonia must accept anything?

The US has a lot of things that Catalonia could long for: Silicon Valley, Google, Facebook, Yahoo, Harvad University, NASA. But LAS VEGAS?

For me is clear that all this of EUROVEGAS is just a way to hide the real problems. Just in time of crisis it is wonderful to talk about this idea of EUROVEGAS. This is the good things that bring to Artur Mas:

– He seems to be worried about creating jobs

– He can put some parties of the left in a bad situation because he can accuse them of not worrying about the jobless if they disagree with Eurovegas (it is a perfect way to use the crisis in your favour)

– He used the rivalry between Madrid and Barcelona for this project! If Barcelona gets EUROVEGAS then Madrid does not get it! (quite a bad taste and quite a populist way of acting. I thought Catalonia deserved something better)

– The more we talk about EUROVEGAS the less we have to talk about the cuts, the agreements with the PP, etc.

Some years ago GRAN SCALA had to be built in LOS MONEGROS in ARAGON. At that time a lot of people in Aragon were in favour and anyone against was considered as somebody who was against Aragon. I never thought that in Catalonia we would have politicians at the same level.

It seems that the Megarich American wants a EUROVEGAS where children are allowed and smoking is allowed. I find that quite outrageous but I imagine that some people in Catalonia just dream of being rich as our neighbours of the north but without making any serious effort and with the rules of undeveloped nations. What a shame, My God!

About 200 years ago Charles Dickens was born. In Catalonia we also celebrate this aniversary. I have seen as in the local library they have put a special shelf with a dozen of books. Some are translations into Catalan (Papers de Pickwik, Copperfield, …) or into Castilian. Some are abridged versions for English learners (A Tale of Two Cities, David Copperfield) I have also seen an audiobook and a BBC box with about 5 films like A CHRISTMAS CAROL, etc. On the other hand, on Spanish TV, in one of the most famous programmes calles SABER Y GANAAR they made a special programme on Tuesday about Dickens and all the week they have had questions about Dickens.

One of the problems I see with Dickens books, and other books, is that they were written at a time when people had not Internet and other leisures. Now I find quite hard to read just a book with so many pages. I even think I would prefer to read selected chapters of different books of Dickens. In fact I am doing this but with audiobooks …

BAH, HUMBUG … is one of the things I have learnt so far …

If I go back to London I would like to go to the Dickens Museum and leave there, if possible, the little note in Catalan of the local library about the 200th aniversary.